A Poetical Cook-Book Part 13

Of wine she never tasted through the year, But white and black was all her homely cheer, _Brown bread_ and milk (but first she skimmed her bowls), And rasher of singed bacon on the coals.

CHAUCER.

Sift two quarts of rye, and two quarts of Indian meal, and mix them well together. Boil three pints of milk; pour it boiling upon the meal; add two teaspoonfuls of salt, and stir the whole very hard. Let it stand till it becomes of only a lukewarm heat, and then stir in half a pint of good, fresh yeast; if from the brewery and quite fresh, a smaller quant.i.ty will suffice. Knead the mixture into a stiff dough, and set it to rise in a pan. Cover it with a thick cloth that has been previously warmed, and set it near the fire. When it is quite light, and has cracked all over the top, make it into two loaves; put them into a moderate oven, and bake them two hours and a half.

b.u.t.tER.

Vessels large And broad, by the sweet hand of neatness clean'd, Meanwhile, in decent order ranged appear, The milky treasure, strain'd thro' filtering lawn, Intended to receive. At early day, Sweet slumber shaken from her opening lids, My lovely Patty to her dairy hies; There, from the surface of expanded bowls She skims the floating cream, and to her churn Commits the rich consistence; nor disdains, Though soft her hand, though delicate her frame, To urge the rural toil, fond to obtain The country housewife's humble name and praise.

Continued agitation separates soon The unctuous particles; with gentler strokes And artful, soon they coalesce; at length Cool water pouring from the limpid spring Into a smooth glazed vessel, deep and wide, She gathers the loose fragments to a heap, Which in the cleansing wave, well wrought and press'd, To one consistent golden ma.s.s, receives The sprinkled seasoning, and of pats or pounds The fair impression, the neat shape a.s.sumes.

DODSLEY.

COTTAGE CHEESE.

Warm from the cow she pours The milky flood. An acid juice infused, From the dried stomach drawn of suckling calf, Coagulates the whole. Immediate now Her spreading hands bear down the gathering curd, Which hard and harder grows, till, clear and thin, The green whey rises separate.

DODSLEY.

Warm three half pints of cream with one half pint of milk, and put a little rennet to it; keep it covered in a warm place till it is curdled; have a proper mould with holes, either of china or any other; put the curds into it to drain, about one hour or less. Serve it with a good plain cream, and pounded sugar over it.

CAKES.

BUCKWHEAT CAKES.

Do, dear James, mix up the cakes: Just one quart of meal it takes; Pour the water on the pot, Be careful it is not too hot; Sift the meal well through your hand, Thicken well--don't let it stand; Stir it quick,--clash, clatter, clatter!

O what light, delicious batter!

Now listen to the next command: On the dresser let it stand Just three quarters of an hour, To feel the gently rising power Of powders, melted into yeast, To lighten well this precious feast.

See, now it rises to the brim!

Quick, take the ladle, dip it in; So let it rest, until the fire The griddle heats as you desire.

Be careful that the coals are glowing, No smoke around its white curls throwing; Apply the suet, softly, lightly; The griddle's black face s.h.i.+nes more brightly.

Now pour the batter on; delicious!

Don't, dear James, think me officious, But lift the tender edges lightly; Now turn it over quickly, sprightly.

'Tis done! Now on the white plate lay it: Smoking hot, with b.u.t.ter spread, 'Tis quite enough to turn our head!

JOHNNY CAKES.

Some talk of hoecake, fair Virginia's pride!

Rich _Johnny cake_ this mouth has often tried; Both please me well, their virtues much the same; Alike their fabric, as allied their fame.

BARLOW.

A quart of sifted Indian meal, and a handful of wheat flour sifted; mix them; three eggs, well beaten; two tablespoonfuls of fresh brewer's yeast, or flour of home made yeast, a teaspoonful of salt, and a quart of milk.

m.u.f.fINS.

Friend, I am a shrewd observer, and will guess What cakes you doat on for your favorite mess.

ARMSTRONG.

Take a pint of warm milk, and a quarter pint of thick small-beer yeast; strain them into a pan, and add sufficient flour to make it like a batter; cover it over, and let it stand in a warm place until it has risen; then add a quarter of a pint of warm milk, and an ounce of b.u.t.ter rubbed in some flour quite fine; mix them well together; add sufficient flour to make it into a dough; cover it over. Let it stand half an hour; work it up again; break it into small pieces, roll them up quite round, and cover them over for a quarter of an hour, then bake them.

PANCAKES.

With all her haughty looks, the time I've seen When the proud damsel has more humble been; When with nice airs she hoist the _pancake_ round, And dropt it, hapless fair! upon the ground.

SHENSTONE.

To three tablespoonfuls of flour add six well-beaten eggs, three tablespoonfuls of white wine, four ounces of melted b.u.t.ter nearly cold, the same quant.i.ty of pounded loaf sugar, half a grated nutmeg, and a pint of cream. Mix it well, beating the batter for some time, and pour it thin over the pan.

PLUM-CAKE.

First in place, _Plum-cake_ is seen o'er smaller pastry ware, And ice on that.

SWIFT.

Pick two pounds of currants very clean, and wash them, draining them through a cullender. Wipe them in a towel, spread them out in a large dish, and set them near the fire or in the hot sun to dry, placing the dish in a slanting position. Having stoned two pounds of best raisins, cut them in half, and when all are done, sprinkle them well with sifted flour, to prevent their sinking to the bottom of the cake. When the currants are dry, sprinkle them also with flour.

Pound the spice, two tablespoonfuls of cinnamon, two nutmegs, powdered; sift and mix the cinnamon and nutmeg together. Mix also a large gla.s.s of wine and brandy, half a gla.s.s of rose-water in a tumbler or cup. Cut a pound of citron in slips; sift a pound of flour in a broad dish, sift a pound of powdered white sugar into a deep earthen pan, and cut a pound of b.u.t.ter into it. Warm it near the fire, if the weather is too cold for it to mix easily. Stir the b.u.t.ter and sugar to a cream; beat twelve eggs as light as possible; stir them into the b.u.t.ter and sugar alternately with the flour; stir very hard; add gradually the spice and liquor. Stir the raisins and currants alternately in the mixture, taking care that they are well floured. Stir the whole as hard as possible, for ten minutes after the ingredients are in.

Cover the bottom and sides of a large tin or earthen pan with sheets of white paper well b.u.t.tered, and put into it some of the mixture. Then spread some citron on it, which must not be cut too small; next put a layer of the mixture, and then a layer of citron, and so on till all is in, having a layer of mixture at the top.

This cake will require four or five hours baking, in proportion to its thickness.

Ice it next day.

LAFAYETTE GINGERBREAD.

Must see Rheims, much famed, 'tis said, For making kings and _gingerbread_.

MOORE.

Five eggs, half pound of brown sugar, half pound fresh b.u.t.ter, a pint of sugarhouse mola.s.ses, a pound and a half of flour, four tablespoonfuls of ginger, two large sticks of cinnamon, three dozen grains of allspice, three dozen of cloves, juice and grated peel of two lemons. Stir the b.u.t.ter and sugar to a cream; beat the eggs very well; pour the mola.s.ses at once into the b.u.t.ter and sugar. Add the ginger and other spice, and stir all well together. Put in the eggs and flour alternately, stirring all the time. Stir the whole very hard, and put in the lemon at the last. When the whole is mixed, stir it till very light. b.u.t.ter an earthen pan, or a thick tin or iron one, and put the gingerbread in it.

Bake it in a moderate oven an hour or more, according to its thickness, or you may bake it in small cakes or little tins.

SHREWSBURY CAKES.

And here each season do _those cakes_ abide, Whose honored names the inventive city own, Rendering through Britain's isle Salopia's praises known.

SHENSTONE.

Sift one pound of sugar, some pounded cinnamon and a nutmeg grated, into three pounds of flour, the finest sort; add a little rose-water to three eggs well beaten; mix these with the flour, &c.; then pour into it as much b.u.t.ter melted as will make it a good thickness to roll out.

Stir it well, and roll thin; cut it into such shapes as you like. Bake on tins.

HONEY-CAKE.